How to Build a Sales-Friendly Website

A wise person told me many years ago, “Your website should be the greatest salesperson in the company.”

If there is a better clarifying statement on what a website is for, I have yet to hear it.

If the company has a B2B focus, your public-facing site is often the first interaction people will have with the brand. For that reason, a “sales-friendly website” is more than just a good idea. It's essential for the success of your business.

So what makes a website sales friendly? It’s all the little things that add up to a great experience for the customer and new leads for your sales team.

Focusing On Customers In The Copy

This is an easy tip a lot of businesses miss.

Imagine you are a customer going to your corporate site right now. Bring it up on a browser and what do you see? More than likely, you see bold headers that talk about your amazing products and services, backed with blocks of text supporting these claims. 

Looking over the site, you might be convinced the company can help you, or you might bounce to another destination on the web. It’s a crap shoot most of the time.

The one way to help your website resonate with potential customers is by demonstrating you understand their needs better than anyone else. You can do this by keeping the focus on them in the website copy, not your business.

Check out this landing page from Marcus Sheridan International.

Notice anything different about the information above? Is he blasting you with bombastic claims of excellent results and unbeatable service?

Nope.

Instead, Marcus is focusing on you -- the visitor -- and challenges you might be grappling with as you try to find the perfect speaker for your event. That's smart.

Would you be more likely to hire a speaker who only talks about how great they are, or the one who understands your challenges more deeply than anyone else?

When you establish this level of understanding and empathy with a potential customer, you've taken a great step forward. There's no better way to prove you are the most qualified to solve their problems. 

The one way to help your website resonate with potential customers is by demonstrating you understand their needs better than anyone else. You can do this by keeping the focus on them in the website copy, not your business. 

Calls-To-Action On Every Page

Organizations that have a content marketing strategy in place are more likely to use calls-to-action, but I still see many blogs that don't have a "next step" for users to go when they finish reading.

This is a tragedy. Every post and page is an opportunity for a customer to take action, a chance to move them further into your sales process. You’ve already peaked their interest with your content. Why not lead them to the next logical step in the buyer journey?

It's up to us to show people where to go - whether it’s another page, a downloadable guide, or a free consultation. Here is an example:

Every website visitor has the potential of becoming a customer for life. Don’t let them slip through your fingers by forgetting to show them where to go next. 

Using Design To Draw Attention

When reaching a website for the first time we all make an immediate judgement call about whether it’s relevant to our needs and likely to deliver what we want. Pages that are jam packed with text and images make us work too hard, and we will jet post haste.

Businesses worry that zeroing in on one thing on the page will drive users away, so they load it up with competing text blocks and graphics. Both the visitor and business lose in these situations.

Giving users fast access to the most popular sections of the site is a good thing, but it's best to use discretion when it comes to design. Great web design brings clarity and focus to the visitor’s attention. If we know our customers well, we should have a clear sense of what they are looking for.

A sales-friendly website does more than improve your chances of finding new customers, it can also make your entire sales operation more efficient. Think about how many hours your sales reps spend educating customers about your services. Now imagine have much time you could save by walking businesses through this information online using blog and video tutorials.

The end result will be more qualified customers who understand what you deliver and want to know more. What more could a sales manager ask for?